Begin Brewing!

In Part 1 of this series, I explained a little about iMake's The Grainfather RIMS brewing system, walked through the mashing and sparging steps, and shared some recommendations.  In this post, we're going to talk about the boiling and chilling steps. Boiling Wort with The Grainfather Being a 120V 1600-watt electric device with a standard US 3-prong electrical plug, you can use The Grainfather indoors provided you aren't in such an enclosed environment that the escaping steam will cause you problems.  I'm able to brew in my basement without any need for fans or other ventilation.  In a small apartment kitchen, I can imagine that the steam might condense on the walls or ceiling and cause an issue - but that's only speculation on my part. When you've finished the mashing and sparging effort, starting the boil is a simple activity.  You remove the grain basket from the kettle, then switch the heating element mode switch from Mash to Normal (if it's not alr...

During the creation of a wort, a group of proteins is formed that will show up when the beer is chilled to drinking temperatures.  This "chill haze" does not affect the flavor of the beer, but does make the beer appear cloudy or hazy.  For darker beer styles like a porter or stout, the haze might not be visible.  For lighter styles like pilsners, this haze might be undesirable.  Fortunately, it's easy to remove chill haze from a beer. 1. The Hot Break During the boil of your wort, it's important to boil vigorously.  This will help to coagulate many of the proteins that form chill haze.  This is what is known as the Hot Break.  When you're finished boiling the wort, gently stirring it in a "whirlpool" fashion with a sanitized spoon will cause the coagulated proteins and other particles of trub to collect in the middle of the kettle.  If you carefully remove the wort from the kettle, you can leave these undesirable proteins behind, resulting i...